RAR #170: How to Read a Wordless Book

For Mamas of Younger Kids

Do you ever feel lost when it comes to how to read a wordless book?

I’m convinced that some of the very best picture books being published today are wordless. They invite us to slow down, predict what will come next, make connections, and linger over a good story, well-told.

Today I’m excited to share some of the best ones with you, as well as a simple guide for how to read them.

In this episode, you’ll hear:

  • why wordless books are worth our time
  • how to read a wordless books (with tips for what to say as you turn the pages)
  • just a few favorites 😉

I also answer a question about how to handle vocabulary when homeschooling, and if listening to books and reading are enough on their own. (Spoiler: ✔️)

Click the play button to start listening:

Time stamps:

2:46Wonderful wordless books!
4:35Get the guide
5:23Q&A: Handling vocabulary in your homeschool?
9:29Can you read a wordless book?
11:32But WHY wordless books?
15:22An invitation to slow down
16:26Confidence builders!
18:57How to read wordless books …
25:36Favorites
26:56‘Hike’ and the wonderful Jerry Pinkney …
28:25Barbara Lehman’s gorgeous books …
29:36Let the Kids Speak

Quote to remember:

“The best picture books tell half of the story in the illustrations. You’re missing a lot if you don’t linger over those pictures. And a wordless book invites us to linger… because there’s nothing else to do!”

Sarah Mackenzie


Books mentioned in this episode:

Some links are affiliate links

Red Sled
Pip and Pup
Trainstop
Red Again
Anno’s Journey
Wave
Float
Good Night, Gorilla
Hank Finds an Egg
Journey (Aaron Becker’s Wordless Trilogy)
Sidewalk Flowers
Night Out
Pancakes for Breakfast
Snowman’s Story
Flashlight
The Midnight Fair
That Neighbor Kid
The Lion & the Mouse
Stormy: A Story About Finding a Forever Home
The Snowman
Penguin Sets Sail
A Ball for Daisy
Have You Seen My Duckling?
One Little Bag: An Amazing Journey
Spot, the Cat
Fossil
A Boy, a Dog, and a Frog
Fly!
Unspoken: A Story From the Underground Railroad
The Typewriter
Peter Spier’s Rain
I Walk with Vanessa
Good Dog, Carl
Flotsam
Noah’s Ark
Hike
The Adventures of Polo: A Picture Book
Tuesday
Chalk
The Fisherman and the Whale
Flora and the Flamingo
Rainstorm
Wolf in the Snow
Found.
The Red Book (Caldecott Honor Book)
Museum Trip

Get the printable booklist right here.

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